The White Pine news. [volume] (Treasure City, Nev.) 1868-1906, 1887-12-24
4 CHRISTMAS STORY
1Ht coNVICT's CHRISTMAS EVE
BIZ WILL CARLETON.

IRAN uarper's Monthly Magazine, for De.
ccmber.
III. term was done my penalty was past;
T..w the outside of the walls at last.
wbeu left that stone punishment OF sin,
Twas most as hard as when hrst went In.
r,.ee,ue ed at once as though the swift-voiced air
Told slanderous tales about me everywhere;
A.iftbe ground itself was shrinking back
FOR fear twouId get the cAin's mark Of my
track.
Women would edge away, with threwd she
guesses,
A.ifmy very glance would spell their dresses:
Msn looked me over with close. careless gaze.
And understood my downcast jail-bred WAYS;
Nv hands were so crim-hardened and dehled,
wouldn't have had the cheek to pet child
IfIhad spoken to a dog that day,
lie would have tipped his nose and walked
away;
And 80 wandered In jail OF doubt.
Whence neither heaven nor earth would lei me
out.
The world itself seemed 10 me every bit
A, hard a pri son AZ the one ia quit
Ifyou nre made OF an ything bat dit,
Ii you We a soul that other souls can hurt.
Turn TO the right haneeforih. whoever passes:
It's death to drop among the lawless classes
Men lose, who lose the frerdship Of the lam,
A blessing from each breath ul air they draw !;
Ttey know tho advantage Of a good square face,
When theirs has been di,hgurcd by disgrace.
80 trudged round appropriately slow
For one with no particular place to 60.
The houses scowlsd aud stared n ifto say.
"You Jallbird, we are honest; walk away
Tbs factory seemed TO scream when | came
hear,
STAND back uns.ntenced men are working
hsrei"
And virtue had tn appearance all the time
Ofuying hard TO push me back to crime.
II struck me strange, that stormy, snow
bieached day,
To watch the different people on the way,
All carrying bundles, OF all sorts of sizes,
a. carefully as gold and silver prizes.
Well dressed or poor. could not understand
Why each one hugged q bundle In his hand.
asked an old policeman what It meant.
lie osksd me over with eyes sbrewdly bent.
While mnt:eIing In a voice that fairly froze,
ats cause tomorroa's Christmas, suppose.
And then the fact came crashing over mo.
How horribly alone aman can be$
don't pretend what tortures yet mny walt
FOR souls that have not run their ree1onings
straight;
II isn't for mortal ignorance to say
What kind Of night may fellow any day;
There may be pain for sin some time found out
That sin on earth knows nothing yet about;
But don't think there's any harbor known
Worse for a wrecked soul than TO be alsne.
Alonei-thcre maybe never has occurred
A word whose gloom Is gloomier than that
word!
You who can brighten up your Christmas joys
With all affections small but mighty toys,
Who fancy that your sifts of love be rash,
And presents are not worth their price in cash,
Thank God, with love and thrift no more at
war,
That you've some one TO spend your money for
dollar plays a very dingy part,
Till msgnetiEed by some ones grateful heart
80 evening saw me struggling up and down
Within the gayIy lighted, desolate town,
hungry, sad-heart hermit all the while,
Ny rough face begging for friendly smile.
Felix's talked with felix's in new-made warmth
and gloc.
Bat ne one had a word or look for me;
Love flowed like water, but II could not make
The world forgive me for my one mistake.
An open church some look Of welcome wore;
4 d., q h.
I'D never seen 'm0ngst my unhappy race
DO many happy children In ono place;